Despite being healthy for almost all of the 2018-19 season, Hernangomez appeared in just 58 games for the Hornets, as head coach James Borrego began utilizing fellow big man Frank Kaminsky more often in the rotation, which cut into Hernangomez's playing time. Despite ultimately seeing just 14.0 minutes per game, Hernangomez still posted solid numbers on the season, averaging 7.3 points and 5.4 rebounds. That made for career-best per-36 averages of 18.7 points and 13.8 rebounds. Now, with Kaminsky gone to Phoenix, there are frontcourt minutes up for grabs this season behind assumed starter Cody Zeller, and with Zeller having only played 82 total games over the last two seasons, there will likely be starter's minutes up for grabs should Zeller miss time once again. Hernangomez will surely be competing with veteran center Bismack Biyombo for those minutes, and his workload and resulting value during the 2019-20 season relies entirely on whether or not he can beat out the big man from the Congo. Read Past Outlooks

$Signed a four-year, $5.86 million contract with the Knicks in July of 2016. Traded to the Hornets in February of 2018.

Personal Bio

Guillermo (Willy) Gustavo Hernangomez was born in 1994 in Madrid to Guillermo Hernangomez Heredero and Margarita Geuer. He has a younger brother, Juan, who was drafted by the Nuggets in 2016 and a younger sister, Andrea, who has played for the Spanish national junior team. Hernangomez began his pro career at Real Madrid with two years on their reserve squad before being loaned out to Cajasol Sevilla the following two seasons. He returned to Real for one year after being selected by the 76ers in the 2015 Draft and then signed with the Knicks, who had acquired his rights. Hernangomez has represented Spain and has won gold at the 2011 FIBA Europe U-18 Championship, 2015 FIBA EuroBasket, and 2019 FIBA World Cup. He also earned a bronze at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. You can follow him on Twitter (@willyhg94) and Instagram (@willyhernangomez).

College/International Summary

Hernangomez may have first landed as a member of the Spanish team in the 2011 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship or 2012 Albert Schweitzer Tournament. In the latter, he was named to the All-Tournament Team, while he earned a gold medal at the former. In his professional career, he played for Real Madrid for five seasons. He played for their reserve team for two seasons. In 2013, the 6-foot-11 forward was loaned to Cajasol Sevilla by Real Madrid. He played for the senior team with Real Madrid for one season in 2015-16. He averaged 5.7 points and 3.3 rebounds during Spanish ACB League play in 34 games. For the second straight year, he was named to the ACB All-Young Players Team. After the season, he declared for the 2015 NBA Draft as a 21-year-old and was selected with the 35th overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers. His rights were later traded to the New York Knicks on draft night.

ANALYSISCody Zeller will remain the starter Monday, and coach James Borrego indicated that he intends to use Bismack Biyombo as the primary backup. Given that Borrego has only used two of the three centers over the past two weeks, it looks as though it could be Hernangomez's turn to drop from the regular rotation. He's backed up both Biyombo and, more recently, Zeller over the last six games, averaging 18.7 minutes in that span.

Hernangomez appeared in 31 games for the Hornets during the 2019-20 season. He averaged 6.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.3 steals and 0.2 blocks across 12.1 minutes per game. He shot 53.2 percent from the field, made 0.2 threes per game at 22.7 percent and shot 62.7 percent from the free-throw line. Hernangomez set single-game season highs of 15 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, two steals, one block and one three-pointer. Hernangomez posted double-digit points eight times, double-digit rebounds three times and multiple assists six times. He also posted at least one steal eight times and at least one block seven times. Plus, he had two double-doubles. Hernangomez's longest streak of double-digit points was three games from Jan. 28 through Feb. 1. During that stretch, he averaged 11.3 points on 8.0 shots, 5.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 18.8 minutes. In the five contests that Hernangomez saw 20-plus minutes, he averaged 10.0 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists.

2018

The 2018-19 season was Willy Hernangomez's first full season with the Charlotte Hornets. Midway through the 2017-18 season, the Knicks traded the big Spaniard to Charlotte, and he appeared in 22 games for the Hornets. For 2018-19, Hernangomez appeared in 58 games for Charlotte, producing 7.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 0.3 blocks over 14 minutes per contest. Most of that production came from off the bench, as the 6-foot-11 center started in only three of those 58 games. On Mar. 31, Hernangomez scored a season-high 22 points, to go along with five rebounds, in a road loss to the Warriors. The Spaniard delivered four double-doubles during the 2018-19 season. That included a 19-point, 10-rebound effort on Dec. 23 during a road loss to the Celtics. Hernangomez has one more year remaining on his contract. Willy's Hornets finished 39-43 and just missed qualifying for the playoffs.

2017

In his second NBA season, Hernangomez served as a reserve big man first for the Knicks and then the Hornets following a February trade. In New York, he appeared in 26 games and averaged 9.0 minutes per night off the bench. The Spaniard would also average 4.3 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. Following the trade to Charlotte, Hernangomez saw his playing time increase to 11.9 minutes per night across 22 games, and he picked up one start. He upped his production with the extra time on the court, averaging 6.1 points and 5.3 rebounds for the Hornets. Hernangomez was an effective scorer in both stops, shooting 55.5 percent from the field across all 48 appearances. He also knocked down 41.7 percent of his 3-pointers. Hernangomez scored a season-high 17 points on Mar. 19. He also recorded 10 double-figure scoring performances, with eight of those coming in a Charlotte uniform. Hernangomez also racked up five matchups with 10 or more rebounds, hitting a season-high 12 boards on two different occasions.

Nick Whalen reviews what went right, and what went wrong, with the first half of his 2018-19 over/under winds predictions.

Past Fantasy Outlooks

2018

2017

2016

An early-season elbow injury and late-season Achilles injury limited the veteran to 64 games during his 10th season. While he was still able to provide all-around production -- 11.6 points, 5.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds, 1.4 threes, 1.0 steals -- each of those categories, except for steals, represented his lowest marks since joining the Hornets in 2015-16. Fantasy owners who are optimistic about Batum can likely chalk up the down year to injuries and the presence of Dwight Howard. Pessimists can point to the fact that Batum is turning 30 and hasn't shot better than 42.6 percent from the field since 2013-14 -- what are the odds he’s getting better? Regardless, Howard’s departure without significant replacement should vault Batum’s usage up to the levels we saw during previous campaigns with Charlotte, where he posted 15.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.9 threes and 1.0 steals per tilt.

Hernangomez was one of the bright spots of a 2016-17 season that wasn't too kind to the Knicks. With starting center Joakim Noah playing just 46 games, that allowed Hernangomez to play a fairly sizable role at center. After seeing just spot minutes earlier in the season, Hernangomez's role grew throughout the latter stages and over the last 31 games of the season he actually averaged an impressive 11.5 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists across 24.6 minutes. That was nearly a double-double, which is certainly tough for any rookie to do. Looking ahead to the upcoming season, Hernangomez is going to have a big opportunity ahead of him. Noah is going to miss the first 12 games of the year on suspension, which likely means Hernangomez will start at center if the Knicks opt to use Kristpas Porzingis at power forward. That should allow Hernangomez to take on a similar workload to what he averaged over the final half of last season, giving him plenty of potential as a double-double threat on any given night. Hernangomez did shoot just 72.5 percent from the free-throw line last season, and didn't do much as a rim protector, but his point and rebound numbers should give him value in the mid-to-late rounds as a sleeper pick at center.

Hernangomez, a second-round draft pick in 2015, reached a contract this summer with the Knicks and is set to serve in a reserve role in the frontcourt during his rookie year. He’ll immediately find a familiar face in budding star Kristaps Porzingis, who Hernangomez played alongside with Spanish club Real Madrid in 2014-15. He’ll now serve in a backup capacity behind Porzingis and starting center Joakim Noah, while battling Kyle O’Quinn for minutes off the bench. Hernangomez occupied a similar role for the Spanish squad during the 2016 Summer Olympics, averaging 6.6 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. As Hernangomez transitions to the NBA, he’s unlikely to see significant minutes on a consistent enough basis to yield any lasting fantasy value.

More Fantasy News

Puts up 10 and 13 in loss

CCharlotte Hornets

March 1, 2020

Hernangomez had 10 points (4-9 FG, 0-1 3PT, 2-2 FT), 13 rebounds, four assists and two steals in Sunday's loss to the Bucks.